Your Anti-Aging Skin Care Routine: 30 Seconds to Beautiful

If you haven’t stopped to thank your skin lately, it’s about time. That’s because during the decades you’ve spent on this planet, your skin has been serving as a resilient barrier to environmental aggressions for every bone and organ in your body, protecting you from the wind, heat, cold, and smog. But over time, nutritional deficiencies, stress, and pollutants all take their toll on your skin, resulting in most visible signs of aging. The skin’s deepest layers lose collagen—a connective protein that provides strength and flexibility—making your skin weaker and more vulnerable to dehydration. The outermost layer, which houses your skin’s protein and pigment, becomes increasingly vulnerable to wrinkles, age spots, and dryness. “Starting in your thirties, five majorfunctions of your skin start to slow down—hydration, nutrition, oxygenation, regeneration, and protection,” says Dr. Natalie Issachar, Clarins Global Director of Product Development and Scientific Research. “Hydration has an impact on the softness of the skin, oxygenation on its radiance and luminosity, regeneration on its fullness and elasticity, protection on premature signs of aging, and nutrition on skin suppleness and tone.”

Fortunately, your anti-aging routine doesn’t need to be long and cumbersome. Thank your skin by following these three easy skincare steps to protect your skin from signs of aging in just 30 seconds.

Anti-Aging Step 1: Lift and De-puff

Time: 10 seconds

Your peepers are one of the first spots to show signs of aging. Smile lines form around the always-working corners of your eyes, while gravity pulls protective fat from your eyelids down to under-eye bags that look like you pulled an all-nighter. But plant-based antioxidants like vitamin C can help reduce wrinkles and make skin more vibrant, says a report by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, while anti-inflammatory agents like caffeine can sweep out excess water. Clarins’ Total Eye Concentrate is packed with many powerful ingredients that protect and soothe under-eye skin, including pueraria lobata (an anti-aging, anti-inflammatory plant that’s been used for years in traditional Chinese medicine and Asian cuisines), vitamin C-rich rose petals (to tighten skin), parsley (to reduce the appearance of dark spots), and caffeine (to depuff eyes). To apply, warm a small amount of the eye cream in your fingertips and gently press around the eye contour and eyelids to tighten, de-puff, and brighten skin.

Anti-Aging Step 2: Prevent & Correct

Time: 10 seconds

With age, your body produces less collagen and elastin that give your skin bounce. And although your body is 60 percent water, your skin loses its ability to retain it over time, causing it to look dull and making it more prone to injury. That’s why it’s more important than ever to take extra care to lock in your skin’s nutrients and moisture.
Clarins Double Serum can help: 20 pure plant extracts plus two age-defying formulas aid with collagen synthesis to firm skin, reduce wrinkles, even out skin tone, and make pores less visible. Apply this face serum using Clarins Touch Application Method for maximum lift and instantly refined, tighter, brighter skin.

Anti-Aging Step 3: Treat, Protect & Repair

Time: 10 seconds

Morning routine: According to the AAD, more than 80 percent of all skin damage is caused by exposure to the elements – especially the sun, which damages the DNA in your skin. So apply Extra-Firming Day Lotion SPF 15 every morning to shield against harmful environmental elements. UVA/UVB broad-spectrum sunscreens protect against wrinkles and discolorations, an Anti-Pollution complex wards off environmental pollutants, selenium helps cells renew and repair, organic banana and lemon thyme help firm and smooth wrinkles, and plant-based Micro-Pearls "fill in" existing lines. Gently press this cream on your face and neck before applying makeup to fill out skin and look younger immediately.

Evening routine:

Sleep is essential for whole-body repair and revival. That goes for your skin too: a recent study by the University Hospitals Case Medical Center found that people who slept less had more signs of skin aging including fine lines, uneven pigmentation, and reduced skin elasticity, while those who fit in the most hours of quality shut-eye recovered faster from exposure to common skin-stressors like sunshine and environmental toxins. Give your body’s repair mechanisms a boost by applying Clarins Extra-Firming Night Cream just before bed, a powerful cream with Survixyl IS™ and Stimulen to help renew and firm the skin, Japanese lotus extract to prevent the appearance of dark spots, and Hyaluronic acid to ensure long-lasting moisture. Massage into your face and neck to help your skin regenerate itself through the night.

So that wasn’t so bad, was it? In just 30 seconds you’ve given your skin the recognition it deserves: the perfect balance of rich ingredients to help keep your whole complexion fresh and look younger for years to come.